Haunting Signs
by Hetapocalypse822
Summary: One day, Pisces comes across a strange charm called "Sachiko in the Everafter". The charm promises, if performed correctly, it will keep all of the participants together forever. With a little pushing, he manages to get the other signs to complete it with him. But then everything starts to go downhill from there... WARNING: BLOOD AND GORE.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own ****_The_****_Brodiac_**** nor do I own any of the characters affiliated with it. ****_The_** _**Brodiac**_** is a zodiac-personification webcomic created and owned by the lovely ****_"SPINNY-chair-HERO"_**** on deviantArt.**

* * *

It was just supposed to be an ordinary day, really. Capricorn and Scorpio were having another argument over which one of them was more of a seme. Sagittarius and Aquarius were busy plotting another one of their infamous schemes, which would most likely result in Virgo's kitchen getting blown up. Virgo, in turn, was in a panicked attempt to barricade all entrances to the kitchen from the archer and the water-bearer. Gemini was chatting casually with Libra, who was trying his hardest to keep up with the twin's speaking speed. Leo, being his usual flashy self, attempted to show off to the others why he was the best zodiac of them all, and Aries, fed up with his usual competition, had rammed his head into the other's back, which later resulted in a nonstop fistfight between the two redheaded fire signs. Cancer, trembling in fear, began backing himself up against the wall and whimpering, and Taurus, who had been attempting to sleep on the couch this whole time, groaned in annoyance, covering his head with a pillow.

"Guys! Guys!" A small voice yelled, excited. Pisces came sprinting through the door, a large scrap of paper in his left hand. He almost tripped over his own feet, causing him to yelp and stick out his arms. Regaining his balance, the Piscean stood up straight, waving the paper scrap. Taurus removed the pillow from his head, glaring at the other signs. Silence hushed across the room.

"Guys!" Pisces repeated. "Look what I found!" The small water sign held the paper out in front of him, revealing it to be a paper doll. Aries raised an eyebrow.

"...The hell is that thing?" The fire sign yelled, rubbing at his now bruised eye, courtesy of Leo. Taurus glared at Aries once more, silencing him. Pisces fiddled with his scarf, looking around.

"It's called 'Sachiko in the Everafter'. I found it online!" Pisces smiled. "It's a charm meant to keep us all together as friends, forever!" Aquarius and Sagittarius looked at each other and smiled, before looking back at Pisces, who had already been joined by Libra and Gemini.

"Count us in!" the troublesome duo said in unison, running towards the water sign.

Leo gave a toothy grin.

"Well then," Leo said, "us too!" Leo ran towards Pisces, dragging a very reluctant and bruised Aries along behind him. Taurus sat up, interested.

"I guess it couldn't hurt…" Taurus pushed up off of the couch, making his way towards the spot near the door. Cancer followed behind him quickly. Capricorn sighed, walking away from his argument with Scorpio to join the group. Scorpio gave an annoyed look.

"Fine…" The bespectacled water sign mumbled, following his rival into the circle. Pisces looked hopefully at Virgo, who was still at the other side of the room. The remaining Earth sign furrowed his brow, crossing his arms.

"Sorry," the brunet sign snapped, "but I have more important things to do than perform a stupid charm with you guys…" Pisces pouted.

"...Please?" The small water sign clasped his hands together in a mock prayer. "Please! Virgo, please!"

Virgo grunted. "I said no!" Aquarius and Sagittarius looked at each other once more, grinning mischievously. Aquarius pushed up his glasses and looked towards Virgo.

"Well, Virgo…" The water bearer began. "We won't force you to come if you don't really want to…" The other signs looked confused, especially Pisces, as to what exactly the mischievous duo had planned. As Virgo nodded, partially relieved, Sagittarius interrupted, continuing on from his friend's statement.

"But!" The archer added, a glint in his eyes. "If ya don't come… Aqua and I can't promise the kitchen'll be ok!" Virgo was taken aback.

"You two wouldn't _dare_…!" The earth sign gasped, his eyes wide.

"Oh yes, we would!" The duo responded. Virgo groaned, walking over to the rest of the group, his head down.

"I hate you guys…" He mumbled. Pisces paid no attention to him, a small grin still present on his face.

"Okay! So, everybody, grab onto a piece of the doll!" Pisces held the doll out flat, grabbing onto one of the arms. "Hold tightly!"

Taurus quickly grabbed onto a spot by the arm Pisces was holding, and the two were joined by Cancer not too long after. Libra and Gemini held onto the middle of the doll, facing opposite each other, while Aries grabbed onto a part of the head, digging his fingernails into the paper.

Aquarius gripped onto the doll arm opposite of the one Pisces was grabbing. Sagittarius, still next to the water bearer, had grabbed onto the same arm, and the duo grinned at each other and laughed. Leo held tightly onto one of the legs, and was quickly joined by Capricorn. Scorpio grabbed onto the opposite leg, looking away from his rival.

Virgo groaned and joined Scorpio, uncomfortable with how close he had to be to Leo, who just gave a wide smile and winked. Virgo was not amused, and had to hold back the urge to slug the fire sign in the face.

"Okay, so everybody's holding on?" Pisces asked. The others nodded. Pisces smiled. "Okay! So, now we have to say 'Sachiko, we beg of you'. Say it once for every person here, including yourself! So that's... One, two, three... Twelve times! No more, and no less!"

"Well, what happens if we mess up?" Aquarius questioned, tilting his head. "Like, if we flub a line? Are we allowed to repeat the phrase again?"

"I don't think you should," Pisces said, his voice changing pitch, "but if you _do_ mess up, just go along with it. I read that attempting to correct a line probably counts as saying it one extra time." Aquarius nodded in understanding. Pisces looked around the group again. "Ready? Go!" The small water sign closed his eyes, and the rest of the group did the same.

_..._

_..._

_..._

_..._

Pisces opened his eyes and looked around.

"Everybody said it twelve times?" Pisces asked, loosening his scarf with his free hand. The others nodded. Virgo, however...

"Are we done now?" Virgo whined. Pisces shook his head.

"Not yet!" The water sign said, excitement in his voice. Virgo groaned. Pisces ignored him. "So, we're all still holding on tightly, yes?" The group nodded for what seemed to be the fifth time in the past four minutes.

"What now?" Aries asked, impatient. "I don't have all day!"

"_Hush_, Aries..." Capricorn mumbled. Pisces continued.

"So, keep your grip on it!" Pisces said. "On the count of three, we're going to pull the doll apart! Ready?"

Leo tightened his grip on the doll, his knuckles turning white. Taurus knitted his eyebrows together in a look of concentration. Aquarius and Sagittarius looked at each other, their trademark devious smirks ever-present on their lips.

"One..."

Scorpio bit his lip, gripping tighter onto the paper doll's leg. Aries's fingernails had dug into the doll's head so much that at this point, the paper was starting to tear. Libra, in his apprehension, swallowed the lump in his throat.

"Two..."

Capricorn was biting his lip as well, drawing blood. Gemini's hands were trembling. Virgo and Cancer both shifted their arms to get a better grip on the doll.

"_Three!_" On Pisces's cue, everybody pulled their arms back, tearing the doll apart into twelve small pieces. Aquarius and Sagittarius had pulled so hard on the doll that, when their pieces were torn off, they had come crashing to the ground. The archer had landed on top of the water bearer, and the duo began laughing hysterically, ignoring the looks from the rest of the signs. Sagittarius jumped back up, face flushed from laughing so hard, and Aquarius came up right behind him, pushing his glasses back up. Noticing Pisces looking at the two of them, Aquarius lifted his right hand, showing the paper scrap.

"Don't worry," Aquarius said, "Sag and I still have our pieces!" Pisces nodded, his face lighting up.

"Oh, good, I was just about to ask that!" Pisces sighed. "Everybody else have their scraps?" Pisces looked around, making sure everybody had the paper in their hands.

"Okay! Done! Now we all have a piece of Sachiko with us!" Pisces clapped his hands together. "Make sure you don't lose your scrap! Put it somewhere you won't lose it, like your pocket or something!" Pisces put his own scrap inside his sweater pocket. Leo followed suit, placing his scrap inside of his jacket, while most of the others just tucked their pieces inside of their shoes or wallets.

"Finally!" Virgo sighed impatiently, rebuttoning his coat pocket. "Now can I go?" Pisces nodded. Virgo clasped his hands together, as if he was praying, and his lips visibly formed a "thank you".

All of a sudden, the floor began shaking violently, causing Virgo to lose his balance and fall on his back. Pisces and Cancer, terrified, grabbed onto Taurus's arms to avoid falling. Libra and Gemini were tripping over their own feet as they tried to open the windows, only to find that, somehow, they had been locked. Aries attempted to break open a window by ramming into it, but only succeeded in badly bruising his right arm. The fire sign yelped in pain and clenched his elbow.

"Aquarius! Sagittarius! What the _**hell**_ did you two do this time?!" Virgo screamed above the clattering and rumbling, his voice audibly shaking. Sagittarius was clinging onto Aquarius, his knees trembling.

"This wasn't us, Virgo!" Aquarius yelled back. "I swear, Sag and I had absolutely _**nothing**_to do with this! I swear! **I swear on my life!**"

"_**Well, then what's going on?!"**_ Capricorn shouted in panic. Scorpio tripped and fell over while trying to run to the door, falling on top of Capricorn.

The tremors got even worse, and the rumbling became almost deafening. Just seconds later, the floor began caving in and breaking apart in places, revealing pitch-black voids. Virgo scooted away from one that had appeared just centimeters away from him, but the hole's size kept expanding. Virgo pushed himself up off of the ground, attempting to balance himself, not paying attention to the chasm behind him. The earth sign's foot slipped, and he fell into the void, screaming. Leo and Scorpio tried to grab for Virgo's arms, while Libra and Gemini attempted to hold them back. The ground around them cracked apart and disappeared, causing them to fall in as well.

The rest of the floor began collapsing, and without any thing around to grab onto, the last of the signs began falling in. Aquarius and Sagittarius were still clinging to one another, screaming. Capricorn was looking frantically around the void for anything to grab onto, like a loose brick or a rock jutting out of the sides to pull himself up with. Cancer and Pisces were both whimpering, holding tightly onto Taurus, who was yelling.

How and why this happened, they don't know. Pisces didn't know what went wrong; if it even had anything to do with the charm. Maybe this was just a coincidence. Maybe the ground underneath the house just wasn't so stable, and the floor had finally given way.

But maybe... Just maybe... It really _**was**_ somebody's fault that they seemed to be falling endlessly. Maybe somebody _**planned**_ this... Waiting for the time to strike... Wanting them to be gone. It could have been a long time enemy of one of the signs... It could have been the group's eastern counterparts... Hell, against all odds, it could have even been Ophiuchus... But maybe, just by some unbelievable chance...

It was one of them.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own ****_The_****_Brodiac_**** nor do I own any of the characters affiliated with it. ****_The_** _**Brodiac**_** is a zodiac-personification webcomic created and owned by the lovely ****_"SPINNY-chair-HERO"_**** on deviantArt.**

**[[WARNING: IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO BLOOD AND/OR GORE, TURN BACK NOW]]**

* * *

Virgo stirred, the faint scent of rotting oak penetrating his nostrils. He slowly opened his eyes, his vision blurred, and his mind fuzzy, as if somebody had stuffed his head with cotton balls. Grumbling about "that damned Leo", he attempted to sit up, his head throbbing. The earth sign looked around, confused.

"Wait…" Virgo mumbled, rubbing his forehead. "This isn't the house… What the _hell_?" He began to take notice of his surroundings: Loose planks of wood were strewn about. Multiple small desks and chairs stood in crooked rows. Behind him, on the wall, were blacked-out windows, and above him were large lights, giving off a dim, flickering glow.

He had no idea where he was, but he was more terrified than he was when Aquarius and Sagittarius had completely trashed his New Year's party.

Body trembling, Virgo pushed himself up quickly. A sharp pain shot up through his right leg, making his knees buckle. The earth sign yelped and fell to the ground, his leg twisting painfully underneath him. Virgo gave a small whimper, grabbing his leg in pain. Then he noticed the chalkboard on the other side of the room. And the chasm separating the two sides of the room. And what looked like somebody's body on the other end. To Virgo, it looked very familiar. He thought it almost looked like…

**"Leo?!"** The earth sign yelled in shock. **"Leo, is that you?!"** Leo's body didn't move in the slightest. Virgo pushed himself back up to his feet, trying his hardest to ignore the piercing pain in his leg. He limped over to where the gap separated him from the fire sign, noting how wide it was, and decided it was too dangerous to try crossing it.

Virgo limped towards the door on his side of the room, twisting the rusted knob and peeking outside. He stepped out into the hallway, gagging at the scent of rotting meat. Covering his nose, Virgo slowly walked down the hallway, to where the door on Leo's side of the room should be. Not paying attention to where he was going, the earth sign continued walking until he lost his footing, almost falling through yet another gap between the weak floorboards.

"…You have _got_ to be kidding me…" Virgo groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose, limping back towards the room he woke up in, looking around for something to cross the gap with.

"I'm sure there was some wood here before…" Virgo mumbled, ducking his head below the desks, when he noticed something in the corner of the room. Virgo quickly lifted his head up, hitting it against the bottom of the desk, causing him to shout and clamp a hand over the back of his head. Crawling out from beneath the desk, the brunet limped to the corner, bending down to pick up the plank of wood that had caught his eye. It was a slightly different color, and seemed sturdier than the others. It didn't seem rotten, and didn't look like it would splinter easily, either.

"This'll have to do…" Virgo muttered, tucking the plank under his arm, limping back out the door. He carefully set his makeshift bridge across the gap, making sure one edge wouldn't slip through and cause the whole thing to come crashing down. He slowly stepped onto the plank, sticking his arms out for balance as he shuffled his feet across to the other side. Relieved that he made it across safely, the earth sign sighed and placed a hand on his forehead.

Virgo twisted the doorknob, limping inside of the room, looking around for any clues that would help him figure out where he had ended up. Once his eyes were drawn to the center of the floor, Virgo remembered why he came across, his eyes widening. Ignoring the possible break in his leg and his near-hatred for the fire sign, he ran over to Leo's unmoving body and knelt down.

"…Leo," Virgo pleaded, "wake up! Leo!" His mind was clouded with questions and worries, and he sure as hell didn't have any room for more. The earth sign gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, grabbing onto the fire sign's jacket, shaking Leo's shoulders violently.

"Leo!" Virgo yelled. "Leo! Say something! Anything!" Virgo was terrified at this point; terrified of the fact he had no idea where they were. Terrified that they'd probably never be found and rescued. Terrified that he, himself, was possibly stuck here alone with an unconscious, or possibly even dead, Leo.

Virgo mentally slapped himself for that last thought. It was ridiculous! They were zodiacs! They were basically immortal! Virgo continued arguing with his thoughts, just barely noticing the other sign stirring underneath him. He looked back down at the fire sign, whose eyes were twitching, and slowly, but surely, opening. Virgo bit his lip, eyes widening in anticipation. Leo opened his eyes and squinted.

"Virgo…?" Leo groaned. "What's the matter? You scared? Is it because of that 'stupid charm'? Were ya really that scared?" The fire sign snickered, giving a toothy grin and a subtle wink. Virgo once again resisted the urge to punch Leo in the face out of rage, instead settling for something else.

"Y-you… Goddamn… _Idiot!_" Virgo shouted, slapping Leo across the cheek. "Look around you! Just _look_, you dumbass!" Virgo was hysterical at this point. Leo, rubbing his now sore cheek, sat up and looked around, confused.

"…What is this place?" Leo mused, his grin fading and his eyes widening. "Are we… _Wait_… That frickin' _earthquake_…! Is this 'cause of that? Then where are we?" The flashy zodiac looked back at Virgo, as if expecting an answer from the other. Virgo only blinked, barely able to recall himself falling into the void before losing consciousness.

"I… I-I don't _know_!" Virgo yelled, glaring at Leo. "I just remember doing that charm, and then that earthquake just happened! And then I was falling right through the floor! Does it look like I know where we are?!" Leo put his hands up.

"Chill! _Jeez_, calm down, Virg!" Leo said, standing up. Virgo looked away, grumbling about something before staggering to his feet, his knees buckling once again. Leo had an uncharacteristically concerned expression on his face as he watched Virgo grab his leg and wince.

"Virgo… Your leg…!" Leo gasped. "What happened?!" The other sign turned away from him, placing his hands in his jacket pockets, feeling around for his paper scrap, which, surely enough, was still there.

"I'm _fine_…" Virgo huffed, trying to ignore the pain. "I probably sprained it when we fell… But it_really_ doesn't hurt _that_ much…" The earth sign attempted to walk towards the door to prove his point and keep his distance from the other, but his legs twisted underneath him once again, causing him to cry out in pain. Leo ran up to Virgo, pulling him up and slinging the other's arm over his shoulder, while the earth sign cried in both pain and protest.

"Well, doesn't look fine to me…" Leo said, looking into the other's eyes. "How about we find you a place to lay down and check it out?" Virgo raised an eyebrow, confused at Leo's strange behavior, but shook off the thought and nodded.

"Fine…" Virgo sighed. He looked around him, eyes focused on one of the desks. "But… These desks… Don't they look a little… _small_ to you, Leo? Too small to be a high school or office…" The other nodded.

"Yeah, they _do_…!" Leo gasped. "Maybe… this was an elementary school or something?" Virgo shrugged.

"Looks like it…" Virgo grunted. "…Let's get moving." Leo nodded, adjusting his hold on the other's arm.

"Right!" The fire sign gave a toothy grin, helping Virgo out the door. Leo almost gagged when he was suddenly hit by the strong stench, but Virgo just coughed and covered his nose with his free hand again, shuffling along the hallway. The two signs continued on their way, when, suddenly, they came across another gap, but this time with doors conveniently enough on both sides of it. Leo looked to Virgo, who sighed and, knowing what the other was suggesting, nodded. Leo twisted the knob, which wobbled as the door was pulled open. The two stepped inside, the floorboards creaking under their combined weights. Spotting what looked like a desk a few feet in front of them, Leo set Virgo down, walking ahead to get a chair for the other to sit on, but he wasnot prepared for what lay in front of him.

**"EEEYAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"** Leo screeched, falling back on his behind, trembling. Virgo, confused, staggered to his feet and slowly made his way to the other.

"Leo…?" Virgo asked, kneeling down to look the other in the eyes. "What happened? What was that, all of a sudden?" Leo was only able to utter a few squeaks and point a shaky finger to an area just a few feet behind the earth sign. Virgo turned around, his eyes widening in shock.

Behind them was a corpse, the majority of the flesh and organs having already decomposed, viscera strewn about the classroom. The remaining shreds of skin and muscles were giving off a strong stench akin to spoiled meat, much like the scent the hallway was doused in. Most of the skeleton was clearly exposed, and the bones were visibly in the process of bleaching. Virgo clamped a hand over his mouth, shocked and sickened.

"…Oh my god…" Virgo said, out of breath. "…Oh my _god_… _Oh god_…** Oh god!**" The two were so terrified that they almost didn't notice the spirit of an adult man standing just inches away from the corpse. The spirit lifted its eyes to the two, dark circles visible underneath them.

"…No… There's _more_ victims…?" The spirit sighed, shaking his head. "Too many… _Why_…" Virgo was astonished, terrified, and confused, all at the same time.

"_V-Victims_?!" The brunet zodiac squeaked. "W-What the _hell_ do you mean?! Who _are_ you?!" The phantom only blinked.

"…You are one of the many poor souls," the spirit mumbled monotonously, "that have been trapped in this cursed school…" Virgo, in his shock, was unable to find any words to say. The phantom continued.

"…You and your friend didn't come here alone, did you?" The spirit asked. Virgo shook his head. The man sighed. "…I was afraid that I was going to be right… I knew I sensed ten others had been brought into this school… Are they your friends?" Leo nodded vigorously, jumping up off of the ground.

"Maybe!" Leo shouted. "What do they look like?!" The man averted his gaze, shifting his position.

"…Unfortunately, I am unable to provide that information to you." The spirit sighed. "I apologize, but I only know that ten other young men entered this school at the exact moment you two did…" Leo's expression brightened slightly.

"At the exact same time?" The fire sign marveled in amazement, grinning. He looked over to Virgo. "Virgo, that means we can find them! We'll all get out of here together!" The spirit cleared his throat, his sunken eyes now much more prominent.

"…I am afraid that is going to be _i__mpossible_…" The man murmured. "This school is made up of a multitude of closed spaces, stacked on top of one another as parallels, held together by this school's _utter hatred and sheer cruelty_… And this space is just one of those many closed off spaces…"

"Closed… Spaces?" Virgo muttered, confused. The man continued.

"The remains of those who have died in one space will be visible throughout the rest at the moment of their death… One of your friends may be in _this very room_ at _this very moment_, but you will _never_ be able meet each other…" The spirit's voice deepened. "But… If by some _miracle_, you _do_ manage to pass into the same space as one another… You still will not escape… Just be grateful to have spent your last living moments with your friends…" Virgo gritted his teeth, once again reminding himself that he couldn't possibly die, and neither could the others. That theywould be found, and they would get out together.

"What the _hell_ do you think you're saying?!" Virgo yelled. The man sighed, his gaze shifting to the chalkboard at the front of the room, and his eyes widened. The spirit uttered what sounded like a cross between a groan and a shriek, dissipating into nothingness as soon as the sounds of chalk scratching filled the air. The two signs looked towards the chalkboard, and were shocked at what they saw.

Below the chalkboard sat a stringy-haired girl in a tattered red dress. She looked to be about nine years old, though it was difficult to know for sure, and she was curled up, holding her knees in her arms. As the sounds of chalk scratching the board continued to increase in volume, the girl looked up at the two signs, a blank look frozen on her face. Leo stepped backwards, shaking in his boots.

**"NO THANK YOU!"** Leo screamed in his hysteria, running for the door.** "WE DON'T WANT ANY OF YOUR GIRL SCOUT COOKIES!"**

Virgo tore his gaze from the girl, following behind the other sign, who was struggling to open the door.

"H-Hurry up, you jackass!" Virgo shouted. Leo continued struggling until he finally succeeded in opening the door. The combined weights of the two signs created too much force against the door, and the two fell out back into the hallway. Brushing himself off, Virgo rolled onto his back, panting. He looked over at Leo.

"That…" Virgo panted, his hand on his chest. "That was the scariest thing… I've ever seen…" Leo nodded.

"I never want to have to go through that ever again…" Leo coughed. "I'll check if it's safe now…" He looked back inside the door, his eyes widening. "…Virgo! Come take a look at this!" The fire sign motioned to the other to come closer. Despite his reluctance to step foot back into the room, Virgo crawled up behind Leo, furrowing a brow.

"She's… _Gone_…!" Virgo gasped, rubbing his eyes. It was true. The strange girl had disappeared, and the scratching sounds had faded away. Virgo slowly stepped back into the room, noting the slightly clearer atmosphere, and shuddering when his eyes passed over the rotting corpse.

"No, Virgo, _look_! The chalkboard!" Leo piped up from behind the other, startling the earth sign into jumping, which the fire sign somehow ignored. "I think I can see something on it! I'm gonna go get a closer look…" Leo stepped forward, the wood creaking under his feet with each movement he made. Virgo, worried that the seemingly weak wood would break underneath their weight, slowly shuffled his feet, following the other sign. Virgo looked up at the board, confusion present on his face.

The blackboard at the end of the room was now littered with a messily-scribbled chalk drawing, which seemed to depict a large figure chasing after four smaller figures, holding what appeared to be a pair of bloody scissors in its hand. Virgo shivered and bit his lip, hugging his arms across his chest, the pain in his leg resurfacing.

"…Oh _god_…" Virgo whispered, his voice shaking. He took a step forward, feeling something in his leg snap, and had nearly collapsed into a heap if it weren't for Leo, who grabbed onto the back of the earth sign's jacket, catching his fall. Virgo yowled in agony, hugging his leg to his chest as a burning pain shot through his muscles. Leo grabbed onto the other's arm, lifting him up slowly and, once again, acting as a human crutch for the earth sign. Leo began moving slowly to the door to the right of the blackboard, as to not cause Virgo any further pain. Virgo gritted his teeth and clenched his fists, trying to endure the pain.

After quite a few long minutes of slow shuffling and pained whimpers, the two finally made it to the door; a harder task than it should have been. Leo grabbed the knob and twisted, struggling to open the door against the rusted hinges. The signs stepped outside of the classroom, and back into the hallway, relieved to see that they had made it across the gap.

Now they just needed to find somewhere for Virgo to rest. Somewhere that would act as a safe post for them. Somewhere to contact the others…

…Somewhere that would give them at least one clue as to _where_ they were… And _why_ they were there.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own ****_The Brodiac_**** nor do I own any of the characters affiliated with it. ****_The_** _**Brodiac**_** is a zodiac-personification webcomic created and owned by the lovely ****_"SPINNY-chair-HERO"_**** on deviantArt.**

**[[WARNING: IF YOU ARE SENSITIVE TO BLOOD AND/OR GORE, TURN BACK NOW]]**

* * *

Feet shuffled across the splintered wood, the rotten planks cracking under Leo and Virgo's combined weight. The two had continued on their way, trying their hardest to ignore the blood-soaked notes and haunting letters littering the hallways.

_"__HELP ME I DON'T WANT TO DI-"_

_"__IT HURTS WHY PLEASE"_

_"__SAVE ME I WANT TO SEE MY FAMILY"_

_"__PLEASE PLEASE I CAN'T DIE HERE"_

_"__IM SORRY IM SORRY I MS ORRY I'MS OS OSORR Y"_

_"__GIVE UP NOW"_

_"__FRIENDS DEAD"_

_"__SO LONELY"_

_"__School hours take place from 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM. Anybody still inside the building by that time… May never leave."_

The notes sent shivers through Virgo's spine, not helping his poor condition one bit. His knee buckled, and he collapsed against the fire sign once again. However, the earth sign wasn't lucky enough to have Leo catch him this time, as the other was, for some reason, staring intently at a classroom door, the opening slightly ajar.

"Hey, Virgo!" Leo shouted, turning towards the earth sign, who was, predictably, grumbling in irritation. "Get up! I think there's something in here!" Virgo staggered to his feet and dusted his jacket off, wincing at the burning pain shooting up from his ankle.

"What is it?" The impatient earth sign said through gritted teeth. "We don't have time for this…" Virgo sighed. "Anyway, shouldn't we be looking for a way out?" Leo shrugged.

"But we might find a clue in there! Or a way out!" The fire sign beamed. "You never know! What if there's something important in there, like a key or something, and we don't find it because we didn't go in? C'mon!"

"Tch… I doubt it…" Virgo muttered, rolling his eyes. The fire sign gave the other a pleading look, pouting and crossing his arms. The earth sign sighed and walked towards the door, pushing past Leo. "Fine… I give up…" Virgo rubbed his forehead before dropping his hand to his side and pushing the door open, pulling out painful splinters of wood that had pierced his fingertips.

Nothing in the classroom seemed too out of the ordinary from what the two had seen; some desks carelessly lying on their sides, chalk dust littered the blackboard, weak floorboards completely collapsed in one area, and an old newspaper lying by one of the holes. What caught Virgo's eyes, however, was the corpse of what seemed to be a teenage girl lying in the center of the room. It didn't seem to have begun decomposing, and it wasn't as gruesome looking as the cadaver of the man in the other classroom, but the mere sight of it was still enough to send shivers up Virgo's spine. Her ankles were severely gashed, the lacerations obviously infected. Her right arm laid limp in front of her, blood pooling around her hand, and her left arm was bent at an unnatural angle. Daring to get closer, and with Leo following behind him, Virgo lifted the girl's right hand and inspected the source of the bleeding. Her fingertips were sliced, the incisions so deep it was almost possible to see bone. Large, bloody splinters of wood were wedged between the skin and her cracked fingernails. Virgo's eyes traveled to the spot on the floorboards where the girl's hand had laid just moments before; it appeared that she had slowly and carefully scratched a out message onto the wood.

"NO MATTER WHAT, DO _NOT _ READ THE NEWSPAPER."

Virgo, confused and terrified, began backing away from the corpse, holding his crimson-stained hands out away from his body, suddenly aware of the contact he had made with the girl's blood. He was _not_ about to wipe the blood on his clothes. Virgo gagged, forcing himself to stop looking at his hands, shifting his eyes over to the aforementioned newspaper, which was spread wide open on the floor. Leo had followed Virgo's gaze, and bit his lip.

"You know what," Leo muttered, "I'm really curious about that newspaper now!" He looked over at the earth sign. "C'mon, Virgo! Let's check it out!" Nervous excitement was laced in the fire sign's voice, giving him a tone that sounded like he was pleading. Virgo shook his head rapidly.

"You idiot! Don't you have any common sense?!" Virgo shouted harshly, staring in disbelief at the other. "When somebody tells you not to do something, you don't do it!" Leo pouted.

"But c'mon! Aren't you curious, too? A little peek never hurt anybody!" Leo begged. Virgo sighed in defeat.

"I give up…" The earth sign groaned, now realizing that there was no way Leo was going to back down. "Fine…" Leo grinned, dragging Virgo over to the paper, ignoring the other's agonizing injury. He bent over, taking the paper into his hands, and unfolded it so that it was possible for the two of them to see it.

**'****Heavenly Post - BREAKING NEWS: SERIAL KIDNAPPING ENDS IN MURDER'**, the headline displayed. Virgo's eyes widened in shock as Leo continued to read the contents of the article aloud.

**'****The good name of Heavenly Host Elementary School has been stained in blood today as horrific details on the recent wave of disappearances are revealed. Over the past month, numerous children have gone missing within the town, and authorities quickly turned to kidnapping as the most likely explanation. Now investigators have located the whereabouts of these children, and their findings are far worse than anyone could've anticipated.**

**The bodies of the absconded youths were discovered within the Heavenly Host Elementary School building on September 18th, 1973 at around 7:00 PM. Authorities further revealed that a male instructor from the school was found with them, alive but near-catatonic, holding a pair of bloodied scissors.**

**Each of the corpses appeared to have had its t_ _gue sev_ _ed and r_ _ov_ _ _ _'**

The page was torn from that point onward, and the bottom half of the article wasn't anywhere to be found. In addition, the majority of the conclusion was soaked in blood, making some words illegible and indistinguishable.

"Okay then…" Virgo shuddered, obviously very disturbed by the contents of the paper. "We read it, it didn't help us, let's go!" He moved towards the door, but it wouldn't budge in the slightest. "…Huh?!" Virgo banged on the door, shaking the knob, but the door seemed to be affixed to the wall as if it were a decoration.

"Um… Virgo?" Leo spoke up, his voice shaking. "You might want to take a look at this…" The fire sign held the newspaper back up to Virgo, but the headline was now completely different from what the two had seen.

**'****YOU WILL NEVER LEAVE THIS ROOM'**, it now read. Virgo stepped back, shaking in his boots, the pain in his leg resurfacing once more. Virgo gritted his teeth, glaring at Leo.

"This is all your fault, you know!" Virgo yelled, his voice quaking. Leo took a step away from the other, his eyes wide.

_"__My fault? How?!"_ Leo shouted back, raising his hands in front of him. Virgo's piercing eyes bore into the other, giving him a look that seemed to say something along the lines of _'wow you are such an idiotic dumbass'_. Leo sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. And suddenly and miraculously, the door finally gave way, swinging back open, causing the two to jump nearly out of their skin. Leo grabbed the other's arm, sprinting out of the room and dragging Virgo behind him. But it seemed that he was a little too rough this time around.

Feeling a sharp crack in his right ankle, Virgo collapsed, grabbing his leg and wailing in pain. He could feel his pulse pounding all throughout his body as his body tensed up. He could hear his own breathing getting more ragged by the minute. He could see a small puddle of blood collecting by his leg. And as his vision slowly dimmed, he could see the fire sign kneeling down by him. Virgo couldn't tell what happened after that, because he had already passed out from the extreme pain.

* * *

Virgo woke up to a throbbing sensation in his leg and the faint sound of fabric brushing against fabric. He attempted to sit himself up, finding himself barefooted, sitting on an uncomfortable cot, his neck stiff. He moved his shoulders, attempting to get his blood moving again. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted somebody familiar on his knees, rummaging through a dusty cabinet for something. Leo pulled his head out of the cabinet, coughing wildly and looking in Virgo's direction, a toothy grin spreading across his face.

"Virgo!" The fire sign beamed, carrying a roll of bandages and a small bottle over to the other. "You're awake! Thank goodness!" Leo dropped to his knees in front of Virgo, rolling up the other's right pant leg. He unscrewed the bottle's top, pouring the liquid onto a small cotton pad. Virgo rubbed his forehead, groaning.

"How long was I out for…? Wait…" Virgo took note of his new surroundings, pondering for a short moment. "Where are we right now? Wait… This is a school… So this must be the nurse's offi-_AAGH_!" The earth sign's words were cut short as a harsh sting pulsed through his leg, jerking his knee back on impulse. He looked down at Leo, who was currently pressing the soaked cotton into his ankle. _"What do you think you're doing down there, you idiot?!"_

"What does it look like? I'm trying to clean your cut!" Leo rolled his eyes, pressing another wet pad into the wound. "You were screaming your lungs out back there! You fainted after you busted your ankle," Leo went on, "then I remembered that we were trying to get you somewhere safe to rest, so I brought you here, and then I saw that your leg was bleeding, and then, well… I didn't want it to get infected or anything!" Virgo furrowed his brow, bewildered at the fire sign's sudden change in personality.

"_What_ in the name of _hell's_ gotten into you, Leo?" The earth sign questioned, slightly suspicious. "It's like you're a completely different person now! Why are you doing this? Do you want something from me? Ah, that must be it! Well, you can _forget_ about getting _anything_ from me!" As Virgo rambled on, Leo rolled his eyes again, wrapping the starch-white bandages around the other's foot. He tied the bandages tightly and tucked the loose ends of the cloth into the rest of the wrap. Sighing, the fire sign sat down next to Virgo.

"Nope, that's not it… It's just…" Leo mumbled, his smile having faded long ago. "It's just that I didn't know what I'd do if I was _alone_ here! I mean, if I didn't clean your cut, it'd probably get infected, and you could've _died_, or _something_…" He looked back up at Virgo, attempting to give him a grin. "…And I guess that the fear or adrenaline or something just took over my mind at that moment…" Virgo tried to process the fire sign's "speech", his eyes widening in shock and surprise.

"Wow, uh… Leo, I'm…" Virgo could feel himself choking on his words, a twinge of guilt in his chest. "I'm, um… I don't know what to say… I'm just, uh… Really grateful, I guess…" Virgo's mind was fuzzy and his eyelids felt heavy as he let out a yawn. Leo smiled, getting up and sitting on the cot next to the one Virgo was lying on.

"It was nothing, really…" Leo sighed. "But you know… No matter how long we're stuck here, I'll be here to help you! I mean, look at you! If we ran into another one of those kids, they'd probably catch you if I wasn't there to help you!" He placed his hands on his hips, letting out a prideful hum. Virgo rolled his eyes and reached inside of his own pocket, pulling out his paper scrap and sighing in relief.

"That's good…" He mumbled, seeming to have been ignoring Leo's previous statement. "I still have my piece of Sachiko, or _whatever_ it was called… What about you, Leo?" Leo rolled his eyes, rummaging through his pockets. His eyes widened and his smile faded slightly.

"Aahh…" Leo laughed nervously, looking into Virgo's eyes. "I think I probably lost my piece… Well, it didn't look like it was for anything important anyway, right?" Virgo sighed and nodded.

"…Yeah… I guess…" He yawned, tucking his own paper scrap back into his pocket. "But you should still probably look for it… You can never be too careful, Leo…" Leo rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah… I know! I'm gonna go in a bit…" Leo muttered under his breath before turning back to Virgo and laughing. "You should probably get some sleep, though, Virg. You sound exhausted, like seriously!" The earth sign nodded reluctantly as he yawned again, wiping away the small tears forming at the corners of his eyes. He flopped back onto his side, his eyelids feeling heavier with each passing second. Leo began tiptoeing towards the door, trying to be careful as to not disturb the other.

"…That's good, just… make sure you…" Virgo mumbled drowsily, his consciousness beginning to slip away from him. "…Make sure that you… don't get lost on the way…" Leo laughed quietly as Virgo let out another big yawn, watching the other man drift off into his deep slumber. The eerie silence of the room had been replaced with Virgo's soft breathing; a strangely comforting sound, especially considering what they had gotten themselves into. Leo closed the door behind him and started back on his way to find his paper scrap.


End file.
